1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an insertion apparatus for inserting various continuously supplied products into containers with ejection means arranged to move parallel to the products over an endless belt. According to the invention, the ejection movement of a piston of the ejection means is provided by a directrix which is inclined relative to the direction of movement of the products. The ejection means can be made to bypass the directrix by a switching mechanism.
2. Description of Prior Art
Apparatus of the above types are generally known and are used in connection with continuous packaging apparatus which, for example, comprise a product chain with product compartments positioned thereon in which products such as vials, bottles, soap bars, etc., are positioned. Containers such as folded containers in which the products are to be inserted are provided and moved parallel to the product chain. Insertion occurs by means of ejection pistons which are moved along a principal movement direction by means of chain conveyors which are also moved parallel to the product chain. Insertion occurs by providing the ejection piston with a component of movement along a direction perpendicular to the principal direction of movement. To accomplish this, in one apparatus known in the art, a directrix is provided which is inclined with respect to the principal movement direction and is mounted on the product chain. In certain cases it becomes necessary that the product not be inserted within the container. This is because there is no container positioned opposite the product to receive it, or because such a container is positioned in a faulty manner. In this case the piston must not be guided and caused to move by the directrix. In the known apparatus a pivotable lever is provided, which, as desired, is either mounted on the directrix or can be so aligned, such that the pistons do not move along the directrix but rather are moved past the directrix without any component of force being impressed on the piston in the direction of ejection.
Such a lever is disadvantageous insofar as the pistons which are initially moved only along the principal direction of movement meet the lever with a given pressure and then are suddenly reversed away from the lever and receive an ejection component of force. This involves a damaging impact, which can result in increased wear on the apparatus, which in turn reduces the reliability of the apparatus. In order to increase the operational reliability of the apparatus, and in particular, to reduce the risk of damage resulting from vibrations and the like which occur during the insertion of products into containers, the directrix is spring supported, such that with an insertion disturbance which occurs when the products jam either during insertion or when in the container, which exert an excessive force on the directrix, the ejector undergoes a slight relative movement to contact the ejector with the container and the machine is disconnected. A disadvantage of such an apparatus is that the apparatus tends to continue somewhat even after disconnection has occurred, such that the ejector continues its movement somewhat due to its contact with the directrix to immediately cause damage to occur. Furthermore, the directrix undergoes a pivoting movement such that the force necessary to remove the apparatus from the insertion location varies in accordance with the position of the insertion location with respect to the length of the directrix.